McKenney, S. (2012, 4-5 September). What is educational design research? Invited lecture for the Crossfield Graduate School at the University of St. Gallen, St. Gallen, Switzerland.

What is educational design research

This study assesses the relevance of basic formal education in information technology for inclusive human development in 49 countries in sub-Saharan Africa for the period 2000-2012. The question it aims to answer is the following: what is the relevance of basic formal education in the effect of mobile phone penetration on inclusive human development in sub-Saharan Africa when initial levels of inclusive human development are taken into account? The empirical evidence is based on instrumental quantile regressions. Poor primary education dampens the positive effect of mobile phone penetration on inclusive human development. This main finding should be understood in the perspective that, the education quality indicator represents a policy syndrome because of the way it is computed, notably: the ratio of pupils to teachers. Hence, an increasing ratio indicates decreasing quality of education. It follows that decreasing quality of education dampens the positive effect of mobile phone on inclusive development. This tendency is consistent throughout the conditional distribution of inclusive human development. Policy implications for sustainable development are discussed.

Basic Formal Education Quality, Information Technology and Inclusive Human Development in Sub-Saharan Africa

This study explains the importance of shifting to digital. It is essential to understand the nature of online learning and its reflection to the practices. In this study, international perspective is examined by underlying the merits of online learning community. In this respect, adding value of online learning, research outcomes and applications and constraints are discussed in relation to the international perspective within the shifting to digital. It is revealed that shift to digital in education practices require international and effective perspective to propose continuous development on learning and skills. In this study, critical thinking skills and critical friendship of learners can be aimed to be developed for personal and professional development in networking. Team work spirit of heuristic evaluation models can be collaborated with other institutions. Heuristic framework is a base for learners and educators that gives insights on social interaction and communication in online learning. Further to this, it is seen that iRemix is used for online learning support as student driven spaces for exploratory media work in media production skills. In this respect, brainstorming, interactive stories, sharing ideas foster the learning development of youth. Different evaluation tools such as diaries, portfolio, reflective tasks and self-evaluation can be used to put emphasis on shifting to digital in education based on international standards.

https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s11423-020-09869-z.pdf

Widening international perspectives and practices through online learning for developing critical friendship and skills

Decision-making in clinical assessment, such as exit-level medical school Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs), is complex. This study utilized an empirical phenomenological qualitative approach with thematic analysis to explore OSCE assessors' perceptions of the concept of a “prototypical intern” expressed during focus group discussions. Topics discussed included the concept of a prototypical intern, qualities to be assessed, and approaches to clinical assessment decision-making. The thematic analysis was then applied to a theoretical framework (Cultural Historical Activity Theory—CHAT) that explored the complexity of making assessment decisions amidst potentially contradicting pressures from academic and clinical perspectives. Ten Australasian medical schools were involved with 15 experienced and five less experienced assessors participating. Thematic analysis of the data revealed four major themes in relation to how the prototypical intern concept influences clinical assessors' judgements: (a) Suitability of marking rubric based on assessor characteristics and expectations; (b) Competence as final year student vs. performance as a prototypical intern; (c) Safety, trustworthiness and reliability as constructs requiring assessment and (d) Contradictions in decision making process due to assessor differences. These themes mapped well within the interaction between two proposed activity systems in the CHAT model: academic and clinical. More clinically engaged and more experienced assessors tend to fall back on a heuristic, mental construct of a “prototypical intern,” to calibrate judgements, particularly, in difficult situations. Further research is needed to explore whether consensus on desirable intern qualities and their inclusion into OSCE marksheets decreases the cognitive load and increases the validity of assessor decision making.

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“Could You Work in My Team?”: Exploring How Professional Clinical Role Expectations Influence Decision-Making of Assessors During Exit-Level Medical School OSCEs

Background: The emphasis on vocabulary instruction in math classes has gained momentum in recent years. Mathematics vocabulary instruction enables students to comprehend and understand mathematical concepts. Most of the study and research findings on integrating or incorporating vocabulary instruction in math classes focus on high school and middle school students. As Math is the foundation for science and engineering, training on math concepts begins at school and extends to the college level. Methods: The study draws on a simple percentage method to understand students’ proficiency in math vocabulary, their difficulties in comprehending the word problems and integrating vocabulary instruction into Math classes. An online questionnaire survey was distributed among first-year undergraduate engineering students in Chennai to identify students’ exposure to math vocabulary and their views on integrating vocabulary instruction into the math classroom. The primary data collected through an online survey is analyzed using R studio. Results and Discussion: As the students come from different backgrounds, the level of understanding the math vocabulary, new or unfamiliar words from real-life experience, adds complexity in the teaching-learning process. Given the system of education with a prescribed time (classes) for completion of the syllabus, both the students and teachers may find it challenging to focus on math vocabulary instruction. The research paper highlights the importance of learning math vocabulary for first-year engineering students and integrating vocabulary instruction into the math classroom. corresponding author 2010 Mathematics Subject Classification. 62P25, 97C50.

Integrating vocabulary instruction into math classroom

The purpose of this paper was to review literature on the Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) and how it has been used to understand the mediation between emerging technologies and teaching and learning in a mathematics classroom. Specifically, it aimed at understanding the genesis of CHAT and further analyzing the studies that have employed CHAT as an analytical framework for teaching and learning in a mathematics classroom context. Two major concerns arise out of this review. Firstly, CHAT has been synonymously used with Activity Theory, leaving one wondering what actually the difference between the two in terms of researchers’ conceptualization is. Secondly, although CHAT has been widely utilized in education research, scholarly articles that have employed it as their theoretical or analytical frameworks in a mathematics classroom context are still too few and yet still, the few that have utilized it have not exploited its maximum potential. The implications for this review for teachers in Uganda are active student engagement and creation of collaboration spaces for dialogue and interaction in the teaching and learning process.

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Using Cultural Historical Activity Theory to understand how emerging technologies can mediate teaching and learning in a mathematics classroom: a review of literature

Mathematical functioning in sub-Saharan Africa remains persistently weak in global terms. This limits the flourishing of young people and communities in the region. Moreover, affordable, effective ways to address the issue are not well established. This paper analyses outcomes from a blended learning ‘Mathematical Thinking and IT’ course, iteratively adapted for East African primary mathematics teacher educators. The course adopted theoretical approaches derived from the mathematics, teacher and technology education literatures. It aimed to address the problem of low mathematical functioning by equipping participants for their own work, and also for supporting local collaborative teacher development workshops. The reported study asked, ‘What are the affordances and constraints of the adapted course and the available technology for mathematics teacher educator development in this context?’A variety of qualitative tools were used to track the course’s impact on the ten mathematics teacher educator participants over six months, as they attempted to transfer course learning to their home professional context. The analysis adopted an ethnographic lens. Outcomes suggested participants with a broad mathematical and pedagogical capacity for change, including critical levels of reflection, made significant progress in their technological, mathematical and mathematics pedagogical expertise. However, teacher educators without such a threshold capacity appeared not able to re-envision practice. Free subject-specific software was appreciated by all participants, but not yet reliably accessible in these teacher educators’ institutional contexts. The reported study evidences the potential for affordable, sustainable, development of many mathematics teacher educators in this context, but further research is needed. Similar courses should take account of local technological and education constraints

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A design approach to mathematics teacher educator development in East Africa

Teaching approaches is a key factor that contributes to the improvement of learner achievement. Moreover, learning mathematics through activities helps learners to develop mathematical thinking which is the foundation for development and a basis for sustainable development in mathematics. In this study, 77 third year pre-service mathematics teachers at Makerere University were provided with an experience of utilizing the activity based heuristic approach in making connections between patterns, sequences and graphs with the intention of developing their mathematical thinking. The participants were subjected to a whole-class discussion after which they reflected on the discussion. The whole-class discussion was videotaped and data were collected through observation of the video and making reflective notes. Having used observation narratives and thematic analysis of reflections from the whole-class discussion through the lens of the conversational framework, it was observed that learning mathematics through activities helps learners to develop mathematical thinking which is the foundation for their development and a basis for their sustainable development in mathematics. The learners are engaged in the learning process and besides, develop several other competences like communication, creativity and innovation, presentation and working in a team. From the pre-service teachers’ perspective, the major implication of activity based heuristic approach is the need for an exigent change of the pedagogical training approaches for Makerere University’s pre-service mathematics teachers. Article visualizations:

Developing mathematical thinking through activity based heuristic approach: a case of making connections between patterns, sequences and graphs

Factors related to teenage pregnancy during the COVID-19 pandemic: a case of selected villages in Mayuge District, Eastern Uganda

Mathematical abilities have been linked to positive outcomes and well-being in adults, although secondary school students in Western Uganda still exhibit math anxiety. Thus, the purpose of the study was to investigate the correlation between the antecedents of the theory of planned behavior (TPB) and math anxiety among students in rural secondary schools in Western Uganda, Ntungamo District, Ruhaama County. Using a quantitative approach, data were collected from a random sample of 578 students using a self-administered questionnaire. Data at the bivariate and multivariate levels were analyzed using Pearson’s Linear Correlation Coefficient and multiple regression analysis respectively. Considering the three antecedents of TPB namely perceived behavioral control, attitude and subjective norms, the study at the bivariate level found that all the three antecedents of TPB positively significantly correlated with math anxiety, thus supporting all the three study hypotheses. At the multivariate level, while all the three TPB antecedents correlated with math anxiety, the correlation between attitude and math anxiety was not statistically significant. Further, subjective norms were the strongest predictor of math anxiety in this particular context. The implication is that interventions with parental views and perceived usefulness of mathematics among students should be dealt with in order to lower the levels of math anxiety among students in rural secondary schools in Western Uganda. Article visualizations:

Marjorie Sarah Kabuye Batiibwe

Papers

Using Cultural Historical Activity Theory to understand how emerging technologies can mediate teaching and learning in a mathematics classroom: a review of literature

A design approach to mathematics teacher educator development in East Africa

Developing mathematical thinking through activity based heuristic approach: a case of making connections between patterns, sequences and graphs

Factors related to teenage pregnancy during the COVID-19 pandemic: a case of selected villages in Mayuge District, Eastern Uganda

Antecedents of the theory of planned behaviour as correlates of math anxiety among students in rural Secondary Schools in Western Uganda.